Taking It to the Pews: A CBPR-Guided HIV Awareness and Screening Project with Black Churches

• Published in: AIDS education and prevention 2010-06, Vol.22 (3), p.218-237
• Main Authors: Berkley-Patton, Jannette, Bowe-Thompson, Carole, Bradley-Ewing, Andrea, Hawes, Starlyn, Moore, Erin, Williams, Eric, Martinez, David, Goggin, Kathy
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome; Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome (AIDS); Action Research; Adult; African American Community; African Americans; AIDS; Biological and medical sciences; Black or African American; Blacks; Churches; Communicable Diseases; Community health care; Community involvement; Community Relations; Community-Based Participatory Research; Consciousness; Departments; Female; Focus Groups; General aspects; Health Education; Health Promotion; HIV; HIV Infections - diagnosis; HIV Infections - ethnology; Human immunodeficiency virus; Human viral diseases; Humans; Immunodeficiencies; Immunodeficiencies. Immunoglobulinopathies; Immunopathology; Infectious diseases; Intervention; Kansas; Leaders; Male; Mass Screening - methods; Medical sciences; Medical screening; Missouri; Outreach Programs; Participatory Research; Patient Education as Topic; Planification. Prevention (methods). Intervention. Evaluation; Program Implementation; Public Health; Public health. Hygiene; Public health. Hygiene-occupational medicine; Public Housing; Religion; Religious Education; Religious organizations; Research projects; Resistance (Psychology); Screening Tests; Sexually Transmitted Diseases; Tests; U.S.A; Viral diseases; Viral diseases of the lymphoid tissue and the blood. Aids
• ISSN: 0899-9546; 1943-2755
• DOI: 10.1521/aeap.2010.22.3.218

Utilizing a community-based participatory research (CBPR) approach is a potentially effective strategy for exploring the development, implementation, and evaluation of HIV interventions in African American churches. This CBPR-guided study describes a church-based HIV awareness and screening intervention (Taking It to the Pews [TIPS]) that fully involved African American church leaders in all phases of the research project. Findings from the implementation and evaluation phases indicated that church leaders delivered TIPS Tool Kit activities on an ongoing basis (about twice a month) over a 9-month period. TIPS church members were highly exposed to TIPS activities (e.g., 91% reported receiving HIV educational brochures, 84% heard a sermon about HIV). Most (87%) believed that the church should talk about HIV, and 77% believed that the church should offer HIV screening. These findings suggest that implementing an HIV intervention in Black church settings is achievable, particularly when a CBPR approach is used.